Lonnie Loach (born April 14, 1968) is a
Canadian
Canadians (french: Canadiens) are people identified with the country of Canada. This connection may be residential, legal, historical or cultural. For most Canadians, many (or all) of these connections exist and are collectively the source of ...
former professional
ice hockey
Ice hockey (or simply hockey) is a team sport played on ice skates, usually on an ice skating rink with lines and markings specific to the sport. It belongs to a family of sports called hockey. In ice hockey, two opposing teams use ice h ...
player. Loach spent the majority of his career in the
IHL but also played briefly in the
NHL
The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
with the
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...
,
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...
, and
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
Mighty may refer to:
* ''Mighty'' (The Planet Smashers album)
* ''Mighty'' (Kristene DiMarco album)
* ''The Mighty'' (1929 film), a 1929 American action film
*'' The Mighty'', a 1998 comedy-drama film
* ''The Mighty'' (comics), a DC Comics title
* ...
. He played left wing and shot left-handed.
Playing career
After one season with the
Guelph Platers of the
OHL Loach was drafted by the
Chicago Blackhawks
The Chicago Blackhawks (spelled Black Hawks until 1986, and known colloquially as the Hawks) are a professional ice hockey team based in Chicago. The Blackhawks compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Central Division i ...
in the fifth round, 98th overall in the
1986 NHL Entry Draft
The 1986 NHL Entry Draft was the 24th NHL Entry Draft. It was held on June 21, 1986, at the Montreal Forum in Montreal, Quebec. The National Hockey League (NHL) teams selected 252 players eligible for entry into professional ranks, in the revers ...
. After being drafted Loach returned to the Platers and played another 2 years with the team. Loach then turned pro and played the next 3 years in the IHL. During the 1990–1991 season Loach led the IHL with 131 points in 81 games and helped lead the
Fort Wayne Komets
The Fort Wayne Komets are a minor league ice hockey team in the ECHL. They play their home games at the Allen County War Memorial Coliseum in Fort Wayne, Indiana. This team was previously a member of the Central Hockey League, the original Inte ...
to the
Turner Cup
The Turner Cup was the championship trophy of the International Hockey League from 1945 to 2001 and the renamed United Hockey League from 2007 to 2010. The Cup was named for Joe Turner, a goaltender from Windsor, Ontario. Turner became professi ...
Finals.
Following the 1990–1991 season Loach signed as a free agent with the
Detroit Red Wings. He spent one year with the Red Wings' minor league affiliate
Adirondack Red Wings
The Adirondack Red Wings were a minor professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League. They played in Glens Falls, New York, United States at the Glens Falls Civic Center. The team was affiliated with the Detroit Red Wings of the Nation ...
, scoring 86 points in 67 games during the 1991–1992 season. In 1992 Loach was claimed in the Expansion Draft by the
Ottawa Senators
The Ottawa Senators (french: Sénateurs d'Ottawa), officially the Ottawa Senators Hockey Club and colloquially known as the Sens, are a professional ice hockey team based in Ottawa. They compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a membe ...
.
The 1992–1993 season saw Loach finally make his NHL debut. He appeared in 3 games with the Senators early in the season, but was eventually released. Loach was quickly picked up by the
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...
however, and he earned a spot on the Kings roster. He played in 50 games, scoring 23 points. Following the season Loach was again claimed in the Expansion Draft, this time by the
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim
Mighty may refer to:
* ''Mighty'' (The Planet Smashers album)
* ''Mighty'' (Kristene DiMarco album)
* ''The Mighty'' (1929 film), a 1929 American action film
*'' The Mighty'', a 1998 comedy-drama film
* ''The Mighty'' (comics), a DC Comics title
* ...
. He was unable to crack the Mighty Ducks roster for the 1993–1994 season, spending the majority of the year with the
San Diego Gulls
The San Diego Gulls are a professional ice hockey team in the American Hockey League (AHL) that began play in the 2015–16 season. Based in San Diego, California, and affiliated with the National Hockey League's Anaheim Ducks, the Gulls play th ...
while appearing in 3 games with the Mighty Ducks. This would be the last time Loach would play in the NHL.
Loach spent the next 5 years in the IHL. His most successful season during this time was during the 1995–1996 season when he scored 86 points with the
Detroit Vipers
The Detroit Vipers were an International Hockey League team. The team was founded in 1994, and played at The Palace of Auburn Hills. Their mascot was a polar bear named Vipe-bear.
History
Beginning
The Vipers were originally formed as the S ...
. Loach would also make stops with the
San Antonio Dragons
The San Antonio Dragons were a minor league professional ice hockey team in the International Hockey League (IHL) for two seasons in 1996–97 and 1997–98. The Dragons were based in San Antonio, Texas, and played at the Freeman Coliseum and oc ...
,
Long Beach Ice Dogs
The Long Beach Ice Dogs were an American professional ice hockey team based in Long Beach, California at the Long Beach Sports Arena. They played until the end of the 2006–07 ECHL season.
History
The Ice Dogs trace their origins to the San Di ...
, and
Kansas City Blades
The Kansas City Blades were a professional ice hockey team in the International Hockey League (IHL) from 1990 until 2001, when the league folded. The Blades were based in Kansas City, Missouri, at Kemper Arena.
Team history
Russ and Diane Pa ...
.
Loach then played from the 1999–2000 season until the 2002–2003 season with the
Missouri River Otters
The Missouri River Otters were a minor professional ice hockey team based in St. Charles, Missouri. They played in the United Hockey League from 1999 to 2006. They played their home games at the St. Charles Family Arena, which also opened in Octo ...
of the
UHL. Over 4 seasons he scored 310 points in 238 games with the River Otters. During the 2002–2003 season Loach also made an appearance with the
Los Angeles Kings
The Los Angeles Kings are a professional ice hockey team based in Los Angeles. The team competes in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and was founded on June 5, 1967, after Jack Kent ...
minor league affiliate
Manchester Monarchs, playing 3 games. Loach retired from hockey following the 2002–2003 season. For the 2003–2004 season Loach was hired as the head coach of the River Otters and coached the team for the majority of the year, but was replaced after 70 games and a dismal 16–47–7 record.
Loach came out of retirement for the 2005–2006 season with the River Otters, skating in 21 games with the team before retiring again in 2006. He had his #33 retired by the River Otters, the only player to have his number retired by the team.
Awards
* 1986:
OHL Rookie of the Year
* 1991:
IHL Second All-Star Team
* 1991: Leo P. Lamoureux Memorial Trophy (leading scorer in IHL)
Community involvement
For several years during the mid 1990s Lonnie Loach had helped hundreds and hundreds of children across Northern Ontario by running his own hockey school for kids. He started this while playing for the Detroit Red Wings and brought along with him former teammate Keith Primeau.
Lonnie's hockey school was a huge success amongst the Northern Ontario crowd. It ran for three years and even spawned one professional NHL hockey player, Fellow Hockey Heritage North Alumni, "The Zack Morris" of KLCVI,
Kurtis McLean
Kurtis McLean (born November 2, 1980) is a Canadians, Canadian professional ice hockey centre (ice hockey), centre. He currently plays for Kiekko-Espoo in the Finnish Mestis.
Early life
McLean grew up in the small northern Ontario town of Kirkla ...
.
Lonnie has also helped raise money for local charities in Northern Ontario by lending his services to charity hockey tournaments in Northern Ontario. One in particular is the Canadian Tire Rino Robazza Memorial Hockey tournament.
Career statistics
Regular season and playoffs
Coaching statistics
Season Team Lge Type GP W L T OTL Pct
2003-04 Missouri River Otters UHL Head Coach 70 16 47 0 7 0.279
References
External links
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Loach, Lonnie
1968 births
Adirondack Red Wings players
Chicago Blackhawks draft picks
Chicago Wolves players
Detroit Vipers players
Flint Spirits players
Fort Wayne Komets players
Guelph Platers players
HDD Olimpija Ljubljana players
Indianapolis Ice players
Kansas City Blades players
Living people
Long Beach Ice Dogs (IHL) players
Los Angeles Kings players
Manchester Monarchs (AHL) players
Memorial Cup winners
Mighty Ducks of Anaheim players
Missouri River Otters players
Ottawa Senators players
Sportspeople from Temiskaming Shores
Phoenix Roadrunners (IHL) players
Saginaw Hawks players
San Antonio Dragons players
San Diego Gulls (IHL) players
Canadian ice hockey left wingers